BII-NM Summer Update
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
NM CATTLE GROWERS ASSOCIATION
Caren Cowan, Executive Director
nmcga@nmagriculture.org
505-247-0584
NM BEEF COUNCIL
Dina Chacon-Reitzel, Executive Director
dinareitzel@nmbeef.com
505-841-9407
NM COOP EXTENSION
Manuel Encinias, Animal Resource Splst
mencinias@nmsu.edu
575-646-1709
Patrick Torres, Santa Fe County Ag Agent
patorres@nmsu.edu
(505) 471-4711
Gerald Chacon, Member Emeritus
gfchacon@aol.com
505-753-6231
NM ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT
Steve Gonzales, Community Dev. Rep
Steve.gonzales2@state.nm.us
505-827-2642
Antoinette Vigil-Gallegos. Bus. Dev. Rep
Antoinette.Gallegos@state.nm.us
505-454-5381
Donnie Quintana, CBR Dev. Team Leader
Donnie.quintana@state.nm.us
NEW MEXICO DEP’T OF AGRICULTURE
Felicia Frost, Marketing Specialist
ffrost@nmda.nmsu.edu
575-646-4429
NEW MEXICO STATE UNIVERSITY
Dr. Jerry Hawkes, Ag Economist
jhawkes@nmsu.edu
575-646-2322
LA MONTANITA COOP
Steve Warshawer, Enterprise Dev. Mgr
stevew@plateutel.net
575-422-2238
BII-NM work has continued on all fronts over the past six
months. Below are updates from several of the committees.
As always, please be in touch with any of the members of the
Executive Committee if you have questions, comments, or
want to be more involved in the initiative.
Regulations Committee:
 Executive Committee member Michelle Frost presented
to the Lt. Governor’s Task Force on the impact of
regulations on ranching and agriculture as a whole
 NM Cattle Growers staff are working to prepare a
comprehensive list of all the regulations that impact
ranchers in New Mexico.
 BII-NM coordinated with NMSU researchers to survey
nearly all of the state’s meat processors to assess their
experience with federal and state regulatory capacity. In
general, processors indicated that regulations did pose a
significant barrier to their current profitability and any
plans for future expansion. Survey results can be found
on the BII-NM website.
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 BII-NM Executive Committee member Steve Warshawer
was invited to serve on the National Advisory Committee
on Meat and Poultry Inspection (NACMPI) Established in
1971, NACMPI was created to advise and make
recommendations to the Secretary of Agriculture on
policies and procedures relating to meat, poultry and egg
products inspection programs. Membership is drawn
from a broad range of groups interested in food safety to
include industry, academia, State and local government
officials, consumers and consumer organizations. The
committee has not met since 2008. The committee will
meet some time this fall. No doubt the "modernization"
of HACCP will be a hot topic. Steve is eager to represent
the interests of New Mexico meat producers and
processors on this and other issues.
Secondary Ranch Incomes:
 NM Economic Development Department and NM
Department of Agriculture are working together to
develop a calendar which will feature ranches that have
successful secondary ranch enterprises and that will give
tips on starting your own secondary business. Calendars
are expected to be distributed in December.
Secondary Ranch Incomes, cont.
 A more in-depth resource directory and how-to guide for secondary ranch incomes
will be published in 2011.
 The NM Department of Tourism has a new eco-tourism program, and they have
demonstrated an interest in including farms and ranches in this program.
Marketing:
 As many of you may know, BII-NM in partnership with NMDA received a grant from the
USDA to carry out background work for the development of a New Mexico branded
beef program. BII-NM staff have spoken with numerous prospective buyers of New
Mexico beef, including independent grocery stores, food service distributors, and
restaurant chains.
 These buyers have provided important insight into the market for New Mexico beef
and what kinds of attributes a branded program would need to have to meet their
needs.
 Based on this research, BII-NM is currently developing several potential “value chain”
models for the branded beef program, including a seasonal New Mexico choice product
to be directed at food-service, a year-round select product for independent grocery
stores, and a premium grass-finished product for high-end restaurants and grocers.
 Once these scenarios are finalized, an NMSU researcher will be contracted to assess
which of these scenarios has the highest likelihood of bringing higher returns back to
the producer.
Cattle Health:
 The NM Cattle Health Task Force has been working to develop extensive, seasonspecific modules that will assist producers to implement Best Management Practices
on their ranches.
 In April, BII-NM with sponsorship from the Cattlegrowers’ Foundation applied for a
USDA Risk Management Agency grant to take these BMP modules out to ranchers. If
funded, the project would include quarterly BMP trainings in 15 locations across the
state, one-on-one technical assistance on BMPs and value-added cattle marketing. It
will also include a BII-NM section in the New Mexico Stockman magazine and free
subscriptions to the magazine for underserved producers.
Intra-Industry Coordination:
 Remember the BII-NM website has a calendar. If you’re looking to find out about
what’s going on, take a look at the calendar. Or if you’ve got an event you’d like to
publicize, email Michelle at nmwgi@nmagriculture.org.
Regional Collaborations:
 Also included in the grant proposal mentioned above is an effort to help existing or
new cattle associations to increase revenues and decrease costs through collaboration,
such as collective input buying, or collaborative marketing.